The western sentinel. [volume] (Winston-Salem, N.C.) 1887-1926, 1887-09-29
A CAROLTNIAN IN UTAH.
SALT LAKE CITY AND THE NOR
MONS.

SALT LAKE CITY AND THE NOR
MONS.
a Sentinel Man, Who has Been There,
Gives Glimpses of Life in the Land
OF the Chatter Day saints.''
PART III
The Mormons worship the same
God as we do, and believe in Jesus
Christ, and they admit the divine orr
gin of the Bible but their religion is
based upon the book of Mormon,
which is claimed to have been given
to their founder, Joseph Smith, By
God himself, through divine revela-
ton. Whenever the book of Mormon
conflicts with the Bible, they claim
the book of Mormon must be right, as
it came from God since the Bible
They observe very nearly the same
forms of worship as the M. E. Church.
All their churches have fine organs,
and fine choirs and the people consid
er it a religious duty to attend wor-
ship regularly. Their preachers al
ways each plain and practical SER
mony nd do not believe in any emo
ton religion. Every Mormon
chilo nas a birthright in the church,
and becomes a member of the same
as soon as it can walk and talk. They
believe that when they die they are
simply transplanted from earth TO
heaven, and that they have set apart
for the head of each family, a separate
part of the country which is peopled
by their own descendants. In conse-
quence every male Mormon expects
10 be a king or patriarch in the world
to come, each member expecting to
have his wives and families, and nave
children born to them, just as they
do on earth. They also believe they
can go into the Temple and be bapti-
zed in the name of anyone dead, and
that person will be taken from the
place of torment to heaven by this
act. Mormons have been baptized in
the name of all our presidents, aud
the great men of our country who
have died years ago Some Mormons
have been baptized in the name of
from one hundred to two hundred
dead people. They believe any one
who apostatizes the Mormon church
will receive the greatest degree Of pun
ishment possible in the hereafter. In
former times an apostate was killed
instantly if it was possible, and mur-
dered any one whom it was thought
tended to apostatize.
This peculiar custom ofplurality of
wives, they claimed TO have received
~.
eph Smith, by divine revelation, and
they think a Mormon who is the hus-
band of only one wife will be a servant
in the wcrld to come, to some Nor
mon who has number of wives. A
plural wife will tell you she has many
troubles on account of her husbands
other wives, yet she thinks that her
reward will be far greater than the
wife of Mormon who has only one.
Notwithstanding the strong arm OF
the law is filling Utah penitentiary
with the Mormons who follow polyga
my, yet it was practiced as much when
the writer left Lentory as formerly
and Mormon who has to undergo
punishment for this crime becomes in
the eyes of the others a saint and Il
martyr, and is looked up to with rev.
erence and love.
The first wife thinks she will be a
queen in the world to come, and will
have her husbands other wives for
handmaids, and this hope aids her to
bear with fortitude the neglect of her
husband for his favorite wife, for in
many instances she is the handmaid
and servant of this favored wife.
The Mormon's all expect their lead
er, prophet and president, Brigham
Young, to arise from the dead and
lead them out of their troubles In
1885, the Apostle Richards, one OF
the best educated men of the church,
told the writer, to "only wait for q
short time and our dead President
Brigham Young, will arise from the
dead and lead us out Of this trouble,
and Notwithstanding we are oppressed
now, we do not despair, having a
sure knowledge of our deliverance. .
They all believe that at no distant
day, the entire world will become
Mormcnized, and that Salt Lake City
will be the capital of the world.
No church on earth works as hard
to make converts as the Mormon
Church. They have missionaries over
| all the old countries, preaching theil
peculiar doctrines, and annually ship
loads of converts are landed in The
United States on their way to Sal
Lake City. OF course their converts
are principally ignorant people, bu
it is no unusual sight to see families
of intelligence and wealth join theil
faith.
/ All marriage ceremonies are per
formed in private. No one is cvei
admitted except the contracting par
ties and the officiatin. Bishops The!
call this sealing the woman to tn
man. All of their ceremonies ar
secret, except the burial, which is sim
liar to our ewn.
Every Mormon upon joining tn
church, is given two robes, which ar
made very much like a shirt, only
good deal longer Over each breas
Of this robe there is painted larg
| eye, and Mormons will never, unde
any circumstances, permit themselve
to be without this robe on, fer singl
moment. Before taking one entirei
off, they will commence putting on th
other one. These are called Endow
ment Robes. Strange to say, John d
Lee, who was shot by the Unite,
States soldiers for participating in tn
n n n r. 4 L